Mobility underused with EAM, CMMS data: IFS study

Report finds low adoption of handheld for data sharing

04/04/2013

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Users of enterprise asset management and computerized maintenance management system software report low levels of access to these systems through handheld mobile devices, according to a new IFS-sponsored survey of executives from industrial companies with $50 million or more in revenue.

Of these executives, 75% report little to no mobile access to data kept in EAM software, CMMS or other applications used to manage maintenance and asset data. Only 34% reported using a handheld mobile device to perform work in these systems.

According to the research, higher levels of access were reported by respondents using native apps developed by their enterprise software vendor and connecting to the application either through a cloud intermediary or through a direct integration into the application itself.

“The study indicates that those who limit remote access to connection solutions like VPN tend to be less likely to report high levels of access and are less likely to be working in the software from a handheld device,” said Patrick Zirnhelt, IFS North America vice president for energy and asset management. “Our own approach includes native Android and iOS apps for any number of different functions and an Android and Microsoft work order management app which is key for the industrial maintenance process. Our full application interface also works on a touchscreen device in Windows 8. By eliminating third-party intermediary tools, companies are in a better position to harness the benefits of mobility.”

The study, “Mobility in the Field Service Management Space,” is based on a survey of 200 North American industrial executives conducted by Advantage Business Media. It is available for free download at: http://download.ifsworld.com/studies.

An excellent article and an experienced shared as a developer (TabsFM) of EAM, CMMS and CAFM systems. Two of the biggest factors we see as causing underuse are cost and platforms. Cost of licences and hardware can prevent deployment. With a range of rugged devices mainly supporting Win CE, 5.0, 6.5 or nowadays Android, combined with consumer grade devices running, Win 7, Blackberry, Android and iOS, there are many platforms for which to develop native apps to support each client. Therefore existing CMMS may not be able to provide the client with compatible apps, at the right price…causing underuse of mobile solutions.